Rescued
by Starlight4u
Summary: He just wants to protect her and save her from her own demons. There was no way he was backing out now. Emma needed someone to rescue her, and Peter felt he was just the person to do so. Spoilers from Our Lips Are Sealed


**-Rescued-**

**Chapter One**

_Disclaimer: All characters, locations, etc are sole property of Degrassi: The Next Generation._

I laid on the bed, my right arm like a heavy weight on my forehead. My bedroom was dark with only the little bit of light coming through the shut slated shades on my window to ensure it wasn't pitch black. The sky was bright blue outside but I felt it should have been storming. So much was racing through my mind all at once that I honestly felt it was streaming into one blur. I had no idea what time it was, what day it was or even who I was. I felt like a cheater and a traitor. How could something that I felt was right end up where I was the bad guy? It had to be a dream. Or a nightmare.

The front door creaked open downstairs and a voice that made me cringe called out my name. "Peter! Peter are you home?" she asked, sounding concerned. Her footsteps echoed on the hardwood floor and I heard her make her way to the stairs. As she started to come upstairs, I quickly rolled onto my side, my back facing my door and I stared at the wall. "Peter, I know you're awake. How is she? Is she alright?"

I rolled my eyes and shifted a little bit, not acknowledging her presence. She sighed and the doorway creaked a little under her weight as she leaned against it. I knew her arms were crossed and she was giving me that look. I wasn't about to give in. This was all her fault. "Peter, please. Talk to me."

Gritting my teeth, I sat up and stared angrily at her. "You want me to talk? _You want me to talk?_ I think, had you, a married woman, not gone off and kissed Emma's stepdad, a married man, this never would have happened! Yes, there were other underlying factors, but you had to go out of your way and almost break up their family because you wanted some action! You're so damn selfish and you expect _me_ to tell you how she is? She's in the hospital, mother! What else is there to say?"

Call me a monster, but seeing the hurt look on my mother's face gave me a perverse sense of satisfaction. The front door opened downstairs, this time my father was home. Mother and I stared at each other even when he yelled out that he was home and asked where were we. I smirked and flopped back onto my bed. "You might want to go say hi to dad. Wouldn't want him thinking you were out having another illicit affair with a Degrassi teacher."

She exhaled shakily, obviously holding back some tears that I cause with my hurtful statement. I waited until I heard her pace down the stairs and fall into my father's open arms before I jumped up and slammed my door. He was such a sucker. I couldn't even bear to listen to their conversations about how their days went and what one another did at work. I guess my mother never told my dad I caught her in a hot and heavy makeout session with Mr. Simpson. I knew I shouldn't have taken all my anger and frustration out on my mother. I knew I was being irrational and unfair. Oh well, I really didn't feel like being a rational person right now.

Shaking my head to attempt to rid these thoughts and images, I slowed to a stop as I saw the time on my large digital alarm clock. Four thirty-seven. It was four thirty-seven. Emma had been in the hospital for almost two hours now and I still heard nothing about her condition. I began to worry about her condition again. Was she ok? Was she dying? She wasn't dead already, I'd hoped.

I found myself two hours earlier at Emma's house. We confronted her about her sickening appearance of only bones. After a brief but extremely intense argument between Emma and best friend-slash-live in "adopted sister" Manny Santos, Emma collapsed in her bedroom and I was sent upstairs to make the phone call to the hospital. When the ambulance finally arrived (I swear it felt like an eternity), she was placed on the stretcher and hoisted into the back of the vehicle with her mom, dad, and best friend Manny Santos. I was told to go home. Two hours now and still no word. I feel like I'm going crazy.

The feelings of guilt resumed their place in my head. I saw she exhibited signs of anorexia from that moment she lied about eating the french fries. Looking back on it, I should have known she was dealing with body issues even when I made her that picnic. The look on her face; that expression of disgust when she saw the basket full of sandwiches and other things I packed for our unofficial date should have told me something was wrong. How stupid was I? I couldn't even protect her then. If Manny and I did the right thing in telling her mom and dad about her eating disorder, why did I hate myself so much?

The default ringtone played from my phone on my dresser. I lunged for it, almost knocking my head in the corner of a drawer in my dresser doing so. It had to be Emma or someone with information about her even if the default ringtone only played for unknown callers. Nonetheless, I flipped my phone open and answered it. "Hello?"

Silence. And then a hoarse whisper said, "Hey."

Despite the grogginess of the voice, I knew who it was in a heartbeat. I smiled and slowly sat down on my bed. "Hey Emma. How are you feeling?"

"I'm good. I just woke up. My mom lent me her phone so I could call you," she paused and I heard her say softly, "Peter, I'm so sorry."

My heart raced and I pinched the bridge of my nose, ultimately feeling stressed over the whole ordeal. "Hey, everything's going to be ok. You'll get better and you'll get out and everything will be alright. You don't need to apologize, though you did scare me a little." She chuckled quietly and I smiled again. "Well, I'll let you go so you can get some more rest. I'll visit you tomorrow and we can play some board games and color in coloring books or whatever else they do at hospitals to keep busy. We'll talk more then, alright?"

"Ok. I'll see you tomorrow. Thank you, Peter," she breathed into the phone before I heard the click of the phone call's end. It took everything I had to pull the phone away from my ear and close it. I stared at my hands and the phone I held, feeling so many emotions all at once. I found myself leaning over and slightly tugging the cord to open the shades only a little more so it wasn't as dark in my room. But only a little bit.

I was ready to do whatever it took to protect this girl.

* * *

Author's Note: Well I haven't done this in quite some time. I guess has changed quite a bit. As a result, the story may looked messed up. I'm trying to do the whole paragraph indentation but everytime I go to save it, it goes right back to where it was. I know there are supposed to be indentations. Anyway, please leave comments and constructive criticism. I love to hear what the readers think and I can't make the story better if I don't know what people think of it.

xoxo


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